The no. 10 Notre Dame Fighting Irish ended their semester break on Saturday evening, welcoming the Niagara Purple Eagles to Compton Family Ice Arena. The Irish entered the contest as huge favorites against the 4-10-2 Purple Eagles, who were outscored 20-4 in their four matchups against Big Ten teams prior to Saturday’s series opener.
First Period
It may have been some rust after not playing in three weeks, but the Irish struggled in the opening period. The first penalty of the evening was called on Niagara’s Luke Edgerton, however a hooking call on Solag Bakich turned it into a 4-on-4 before the Irish could capitalize.